Special Documentary Screening: “It Stays With You: Use of Force by UN Peacekeepers in Haiti”

On 15 November 2017, UNU will host a screening of It Stays With You: Use of Force by UN Peacekeepers in Haiti. The screening will be followed by a conversation with Co-producer and Co-director Siobhán Wills, Professor at Ulster University’s Transitional Justice Institute. This event will start at 6:30 p.m. at UNU Headquarters in Tokyo.

The UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) recently concluded its 13-year assignment. During its operations, MINUSTAH has faced a range of challenges, from violent armed gangs to the destructive 2010 earthquake. This documentary showcases the impact of MINUSTAH’s offensive stabilisation operations in the Cité Soleil commune in Port-au-Prince. Containing never-seen-before interviews with affected locals and expert commentary, the film depicts the impact of the violence and how survivors have fared 10 years down the line. Raising important questions about accountability, the documentary speaks to one of the many unresolved issues still affecting UN peacekeeping operations today.

Following the documentary screening, Prof. Siobhán Wills will join Mr Adam Day, Senior Policy Advisor at the UNU Centre for Policy Research, to address the controversial questions raised in the film on the use of force by UN peacekeepers.

The UNU Conversation Series aims to foster audience participation: you are encouraged to engage with the speakers during the conversation and at the reception that will follow, where all audience members can enjoy the food and drinks served, while exchanging ideas and making new contacts.

Please note that this event will be in English only; Japanese interpretation will not be provided. Advance registration (by 14 November) is required. Please click on the REGISTER button above to access the online registration page.

About the documentary and its producers and directors

It Stays With You: Use of Force by UN Peacekeepers in Haiti is a documentary produced and directed by Prof. Siobhán Wills and Prof. Cahal McLaughlin on the legacy of MINUSTAH peacekeeping operations in Cité Soleil. The film premiered in its Creole version at the FOKAL Cultural Centre in Port-au-Prince in June 2017. The English version was shown at the Royal Irish Academy in Dublin, and is scheduled to be screened at Harvard University (USA), the University of Oxford (UK), and New York University (USA) in the upcoming months.

Siobhán Wills is a professor of law at the Transitional Justice Institute of Ulster University (UK), with a focus on international humanitarian law issues, peacekeeping, and protection of civilians.

Cahal McLaughlin is a professor at the Senator George J. Mitchell Institute for Global Peace, Security and Justice, and Chair of Film Studies at Queen’s University Belfast (UK). His previous films include Armagh Stories: Voices from the Gaol (2015) and We Never Give Up II (2012).